The Local Property Expert

To Extend or Not To Extend? That Is The Question….

Last week, a Walsall landlord emailed me, after reading one of my local articles, to ask if he should extend his terraced house, making an extra bedroom in the loft. He had a builder friend who owed him a favour, and thought it a good way to achieve an ‘inexpensive’ extension.

Having more useable space is generally thought to be consistent with better quality accommodation and homeowners and tenants are prepared to pay for it. If you added a bedroom to a two bed terraced to make a three bed terrace, it will add around 10% to the value of the property. Turn a three bed terraced into four bed terraced, and approximately 9% will be added to the value. Looking at semi-detached properties, turning a two into a three bed and around 12% will be added to the value, whilst making a three bed semi into a four bed will add 9% in value.

However, before you rush off to the planning department there are some important considerations, whether you are a homeowner or landlord. What would be the cost of making that extra bedroom? The average value of a terraced house in Walsall is currently £115,800 whilst the average value of a semi detached house is £145,900, meaning to make money the cost of the extension would need to be less than £11,001 on the terraced property and £15,319 on the semi detached house.

Talking to a number of trade’s people in the Town, most are booking up into the New Year. Also, no matter how good a friend he was, I know of no builders that would charge as little as that! Maybe the builder was just thinking of a bit of pointing work on the chimney!

Well, that got me thinking about how bedrooms affect rental prices and rentability. Interestingly, you will see below that whilst bedrooms do have an effect on the rent that can be achieved and the rentability of the property – the difference does not really warrant the expense, hassle and trouble of extending.

18.8% of the one bed properties on the market to rent in Walsall have a tenant paying an average rent of £411 per month

43.3% of the two bed properties, have a tenant paying an average rent of £541 per month

39.8% of three bed properties costs a tenant an average rent of £571 per month

21.5% of the four bed properties have a tenant with an average rent of £669 per month

Now, if you want to increase the value of your property, be you a Walsall landlord or homeowner, there are things that cost a lot less than building extra bedrooms. Spruce up the exterior, decorate all the rooms, install fresh carpets and curtains. For homeowners, a matter of a few hundred pounds will add thousands whilst for landlords, these things can add an extra 10% to the rent that you can achieve.

If you would like to discuss this topic in more detail or anything related to residential lettings in the Walsall area then please don’t hesitate to contact me on:

Meet the Author

Salek Miah

Hi and thank you for visiting this blog. I have been involved in the Walsall Property Market since 1999, owning and then running my own property management company since 2005.

I have always shared my thoughts on the local property market in Walsall with my landlords, but now I want to share with everyone in the town including many outside of the area who have an interest.

On this blog I will talk about what is happening in the town’s property market itself, even looking at specific streets or housing estates. At other times I will post what I consider decent buy to let deals. As I am not involved in sales my loyalty is not divided. I can look at the whole of market and give you, independent and impartial advice on what I consider the best investment opportunities.